R.J. Lank steers an Edsel, a brand long forgotten by most people. It only lasted three model years, from 1958 to 1960, before its parent company, Ford, pulled the plug on it. Nevertheless, Lank enjoys racing with the rare car.
He competes with the Edsel in the American Iron Racing Series (AIRS). The tour visits tracks, both dirt and pavement, in Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Its rules permit cars from 1950 to 1979.
“This is no nostalgia division,” Lank, 29, of Tipton, Iowa, said. “We have full-blown race cars that rub fenders, crash, and race to win.”
Lank’s Edsel race car consists of primarily OEM parts.
“The frame is an authentic 1958 Ford factory frame used for Fairlanes and Edsels,” said Lank. “It uses factory suspension and steering. The only thing different is that we have IMCA upper control arms up front. The leaf springs in the rear are on the factory mounting points.”
Lank used a 302-cid engine from a Ford Explorer. With a stroker crankshaft, he increased its displacement to 347 cid.
“All of the body panels — hood, trunk, roof, fenders, doors — are authentic,” Lank said. “I built a cage, and that is the extent of what is new.”
Lank won four times in AIRS last year. However, that didn’t mean he raced throughout the season without incurring some damage.
“I tore it up a few times last year, and it was hard to take,” said Lank. “When all is done, we have race cars, and to race them things like that happen.”
Luckily, Lank has accumulated Edsel parts, thanks in part to AIRS founder, Brian Gade, of Clarence, Iowa. Six miles from Gade’s engine and transmission shop, a truck stop went out of business.
“Brian heard from the owner that there was a collection of cars at the rear of the truck stop,” Lank said. “He offered us a chance to pick through the cars. We found four Edsels. The truck stop owner gave Brian two, I bought the third, and the fourth was in too rough of shape to save.”
Gade’s father, Delmar, who passed away in 2020, raced with 1958 Ford chassis and Ford Fairlane bodies during his career.
“It was Delmar’s lost dream to build one of those cars today,” said Lank. “Brian wanted to honor him. Brian found a ’58 Ford chassis and built a Fairlane for Brian to drive. Then, he built a new car, and we put the Edsel body on the Ford frame, which is what the Edsel originally used. If it weren’t for Brian, I wouldn’t be racing the Edsel today.”
Finding replacement parts for the Edsel does not come easy.
“One of the cars we had was a ’59 — those parts were not interchangeable with the ’58,” Lank said. “We needed to stock up on Edsel parts. I found another Edsel up north and bought it for its fenders and doors.”
Despite the difficulty in finding Edsel parts, R.J. Lank enjoys competing with the rare ride.
“A lot of blood, sweat, and tears go into keeping the Edsel race-ready,” Lank said. “I’m proud to say, ‘It’s an Edsel, and yes, it is real.”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
